Patrol that pasture, grab that can of corn: Baseball's new again


CORNWALL — Think you know baseball trivia?

Did you know an easy fly ball is a "can of corn"? How about the fact that belt loops were replaced with "belt tubes" to prevent cheating? Or that the Brooklyn Dodgers were once called the "Bridegrooms"?

It’s a safe bet the newly released "Hey Batta Batta Swing!" will divulge some new tidbits for even the most savvy trivia expert. But the odd thing is, this highly entertaining source of baseball facts and history is found in a book aimed at 6- to 10-year-olds. Odder still, this book’s appeal reaches adults, non-fans and anyone interested in an engrossing read and wildly funny illustrations.

Cornwall and New York City resident Sally Cook, a former Associated Press reporter and author of "Good Night, Pillow Fight," now finds herself with a published tome about "the wild old days of baseball," as the bright yellow cover of the 48-pager promises.

The key to successfully writing children’s books, she said, is not to write about your kids and their experiences, but to write from your own experience as a child.

"They say write what you know, and that applies to kid’s books," Cook told The Journal. "Baseball was part of me as a kid. About four years ago, I committed myself to the idea, although I really didn’t know where I was going with it."

Cook called on longtime family friend Jim Charlton, who lives in New York City and Lakeville.

"I decided I wanted a researcher, but I didn’t realize how much he knew."

Neither did Charlton.

"I was surprised by the things I didn’t know," Charlton told The Journal in a separate interview. "My professional life is baseball. I’ve written other books on baseball and I’m the publisher of the Society for American Baseball Research newsletter. It’s a very serious organization of about 7,500 baseball writers, researchers and historians. But in doing research for this book, I came across things I hadn’t heard of."

Charlton, who admits to being a Chicago Cubs fan, is also a judge of the Casey Award, given annually to the best baseball book.

Their collaboration consisted of Charlton bouncing trivia off Cook, who decided what would appeal to children.

"She would ask me questions I never would have suspected, from a different perspective, so it really was a lot of fun to do," Charlton said.

Cook envisioned lively illustrations. She was not disappointed when her agent hooked her up with Ross MacDonald, a Newtown artist who has done illustrations for magazines including the New Yorker and Newsweek and has written and illustrated several children’s books.

Cook put together an assortment of facts that somehow end up in story format. She covers highlights from more than a century of the sport’s team names, uniform trivia, player nicknames, strange trades and the myriad ways players managed to cheat.

Fans who complain stringent rules slow the pace of the game might have enjoyed it more way back when it was pretty much a free-for-all. Runners could be put out by being hit with a thrown ball.

Players shirt colors once matched their field positions, making for confusing plays. No gloves were used at first and batters could actually order the pitch they wanted.

The book is full of terms long-forgotten or still used today. A "frozen rope" is a hard line drive. Outfielders were once said to "patrol the pasture," "dingers" were home runs and "high heat" has always been a popular way to describe a fast ball.

If multi-million dollar trades seem disrespectful of America’s pastime, consider that minor league players have weathered some real ego-busters. Players have been traded for a sack of oysters, a bag of prunes and even turkeys, so a team could have a Thanksgiving dinner.

"One of my favorite stories," Cook said, "was how ‘Cool Papa’Bell, who played in the Negro League, got his nickname. They say it was such a fast runner, he could turn off the bedroom light switch, jump into bed and be under the covers before the room got dark."

There are lots of ways to get a copy of "Hey Batta Batta Swing!" Beyond the conventional methods of book stores and Internet sellers, one can meet authors Cook and Charlton at a book signing at the Wish House in West Cornwall April 7. One can also attend the Yankees opening day dinner April 2, where 1,000 copies will be given away. How’s that for an endorsement?

The April 7 Wish House event will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. and will include prizes by designer Josh Bach for trivia contest winners.


— Karen Bartomioli

 

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